What The Heart Wants

Chapter 1

When Emily Fields entered the upstairs playroom, she found Alison DiLaurentis lying on the floor. Her eighteen-month-old daughter, Ellie, sat beside her, rhythmically tapping her stomach with a giant plastic spoon.

"Boom, Ba-Ba," Ellie said. "Boom, boom, boom."

Meanwhile, Jake, Ellie's twin, stood at Alison's head on plump toddler legs, little hands over her eyes in a beginner's attempt at peek-a-boo.

Watching them, Emily couldn't help thinking that for a woman who'd never wanted children of her own, Alison sure was a dream with them. The lady never smiled, yet she lavished her kids with attention and affection like no other.

"Boo!" Cried Jake, followed by a delighted toddler belly laugh that had him toppling head over heels towards his Baba face. Alison caught him easily and started to tickle him, bringing more happy chortling from Jake.

Ellie spotted Emily first. "Emmy!" She dropped her spoon, lurched to her feet and toddled across the floor with her little arms wide, running towards her aunt.

Emily scooped her up. She smelled so sweet, like vanilla and apples. "Hows my sweet girl?"

Ellie replied in almost English. "I goo."

Alison sat up, Jake still in her arms. "Emily." She looked a little worried at the sight of her. She came by often to see the twins, but she'd always call in advance. Letting her know first, but not this time. "Everything okay?"

"Absolutely." Emily kissed Ellie's plump cheek. "Sorry, I know I should have called first." But if she'd called and said she would like to speak with her, she would have asked what was going on, and Emily didn't want to get into that until they were face-to-face. Alison could too easily blow her off over the phone. Nope... She needed to speak with her directly.

Hanna, Alison's youngest sister, who had answered the door at Emily's knock, entered the playroom right then. "Emily needs to talk to you, Alison." She said in a stern voice.

"Sure-down you go, big fella" The blonde set down her giggling son on his feet.

"Come on, you two." Hanna took Ellie from Emily and held out her hand for Jake. "Bath time." She set off, carrying Ellie and pulling Jake along gently, on her way to the big bathroom down the hall.

Alison stood in the middle of the floor, watching Emily. "How 'bout a drink?"

"Sounds good."

Downstairs in the kitchen, she poured them each two fingers of very old scotch, neat. Emily wasn't much of a drinker, and scotch wasn't her favorite. But she had an offer to make, and she wanted Alison to say yes to it. After all sharing a drink first might loosen her up a little.

She raised her glass and took a small sip. It burned going down, and she tried not to shudder. With a slight cough she said, "Strong stuff."

Alison looked at her sideways and grumbled, "Why didn't you just say you hate scotch? You didn't have to drink it."

"No. Really. It's very good." Emily smiled.

The blonde stared at her doubtful and not very amused, for a couple of awkward seconds and then, with a shrug, Alison looked out the window. It was after seven on a cool Friday night in March, and was already dark out. Beyond the glass, garden lights glowed golden through the thickening fog.

Emily rested her hand on the cool, smooth soapstone counter. It was a beautiful kitchen. Her cousin, Camila had redone it with meticulous, loving care. It had lustrous heated wood floors in a herringbone pattern, a giant farm-style sink, twinkly glass back splashes and chef-grade appliances.

Camila.

Emily's throat got tight just thinking of her. She'd died eighteen months ago, leaving behind two adorable new born babies - and one very grim wife. For the last fifteen years or so Alison had hardly been what Emily would call a happy lady anyway, but since they lost Camila she rarely cracked a smile.

She took another sip and inched up on the reason she'd stopped by "So than, what will you do for child care now?"

Alison shifted her gaze back to Emily. "What can I do? Guess, I'll try the nanny service again."

Emily almost laughed, though it wasn't funny at all. "Oh... ok... will you ask for the one with the alcohol problem or the one who calls in sick all the time and never shows up? Or maybe the one who's in love with you?" Alison was a beautiful woman with her sexy fit figure and her I'm too-serious, borderline-broody way. It wasn't the least surprising that one of the endless string of nannies and babysitters had decided she was meant to become a second mother to her children and show her how to heal her wounded heart.

Alison pinched the bridge of her perfect nose as though she might be getting a headache. "Something will come up." Her eyes - of a rather eerie pale blue - had circles under them. Clearly, she hadn't been sleeping well lately.

Emily felt kinda guilty for teasing her. Okay, she harbored some animosity towards Alison for what had gone down between her and her cousin in the last months of Camila's life. But that was private stuff, married couple stuff, stuff Camila shared with Emily in the strictest of confidence. Stuff she shouldn't be bringing up.

Alison't wasn't a bad person she just had to shoulder too much, too young. On the plus side, she was a woman you know, you could count on - and pretty much everyone did. Emily needed to remember Alison's good qualities whenever she felt tempted to blame the blonde for making Camila unhappy.

After all Alison was doing the best she could, and she did have a real problem. President and CEO of DiLaurentis' Real Estate, Alison worked long and hard hours. She needed reliable child care for her twins. Yet the nannies came and went. And Alison mother-in-law, Emily's aunt Sinuhe, had always been her nanny of last resort, stepping up to take care of the kids every time another caregiver bit the dust.

Then two days ago Sinuhe tripped and fell - over little Jake. The boy was fine, but Sinuhe had four broken bones in her right foot. At seventy and now on crutches, Emily's aunt was no longer in any condition to be chasing after little ones. Alison needed another nanny, and she needed one now.

Emily knocked back the rest of her scotch. It seared a bracing path down her throat as she plunked her glass on the counter. "Okay, so here's the thing..."

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Hi there Lovelies,

Hope you're enjoying the story so far... let me know what you think. Will try to have part two up soon.

Laters,
~ Andrea